When Saja Abbas was in middle school in Iraq, her education came to a sudden halt. The war that began in 2003 disrupted daily life, closing schools and shifting her family’s focus to survival. “I was a kid at home who didn’t understand what was going on,” Saja recalled. “But it was a big impact on my education.”

In 2006, Saja and her family fled to Syria to escape the violence, but even there, education remained out of reach. Three years later, they arrived in the United States as refugees, determined to build a safer, more promising future.

In 2013, Saja enrolled at The Excel Center®, Goodwill’s tuition-free high school for adults. Her initial goal was simple yet profound: to learn English so she could communicate and help her family. “The high school diploma was not the goal for me. My goal was to learn English,” she said.

But with each class, Saja’s goals expanded. She faced the daunting task of learning English head-on, taking English classes repeatedly until she became fluent. Her persistence inspired everyone around her. “Saja was an incredibly resilient student,” said Wes Coker, lead teacher, at The Excel Center in Noblesville, Indiana. “Most people would struggle to take the same class over and over. Her bravery inspired me.”

Even while mastering a new language, Saja was building a community. She tutored fellow students in math and often helped translate, making sure others didn’t feel lost like she once had.

With hard work and the support of The Excel Center, Saja not only learned English, but she also earned her high school diploma, college credits and a pharmacy technician certification. This launched her into a career she was eager to grow. “With the pharmacy certification, I was able to work as a technician. But to me, I wanted to do more,” she said.

And more she did. In just three years, Saja completed her chemistry degree, then earned a Doctor of Pharmacy from Purdue University. Today, she’s making an impact at Eli Lilly.

“I would choose something challenging over something in my comfort zone because life is going to be hard,” she said. “Choosing something hard to match your dream will be worth it.”

For Saja, the sky is truly the limit. As she looks to the future, she says her “goal is to help people anywhere in the world.”